Christmas lights are a large part of the Christmas cheer. Sheena Klaudt, the creator and administrator of a Facebook group that has a map of some of the best-decorated houses in the Bismarck, Lincoln and Mandan area. This year, the map will be celebrating its 14th Christmas.
“I created the map because I wanted to remember how to find the cool ones that were out of town or a little side streets that I wasn’t typically on,”Klaudt said. “I like taking my family to go look at Christmas lights every year, and I would struggle with where to go, so I created a map so that I would remember and then I started a small Facebook group where I added. Some friends and family from town. I told them to let me know if they knew of any other cool lights that we could add to it and share.” A few years went by and people added some of her friends and one of her old classmates that she graduated with told her that the radio station shared the map on their Facebook page and it has grown every year since then. Currently, over 15,000 people in the group.
Bismarck High School Junior Deacon Sabot and his family use the map to find lights every year.
“It’s really useful for finding lights that we wouldn’t even know about.”
But what would this Christmas light fanatic consider some of the best houses? Klaudt chose two displays that go all out every Christmas. One being the Chmielewskis and the other a display made by Craig Theurer and the help of his neighbors. Chmielewski’s is a large display that many people in Bismarck know. Sabot goes to the house yearly.
“I think it’s beautiful and they’re contributing to the community. I go every year when my family and I go driving around looking at Christmas lights,” Sabot said. “I just absolutely love all the Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer stuffed animals and the ferris wheel and I love that it was all built. You can really see all the dedication put into the work done there.”
Another BHS junior, Luke Schaeffer, agrees, saying, “I think it’s a great experience and I think the people who go are really happy that Chmielewski’s put the work into it every year.”
The display in Lincoln started as a small thing with one house, but grew over the years. Sabot notes his love for the display, “I remember when there were hardly any houses, and it amazed me to hear that there are now over ten houses in the display, all connected to the same music. It’s a fun place to go every Christmas. It’s fun to park in the middle and be able to see the display from all four sides of the car.”
Christmas lights are difficult to set up because they are such big displays that require multiple people and lots of time. The dedication from both houses and the Klaudt’s Facebook group makes Christmas brighter for all of their visiting community.